Loki's Plan
by Amaya Shinkuyoake
Summary: Rated for, well, Odin, I guess... and Loki's not being able to keep his hands to himself. A continuation based on the events of Idun's Apples. Mayura learns that it pays to be careful what you wish for.
1. Part 1

Well, I had intended Idun's Apples to be a stand-alone oneshot, I really had, but then somebody asked for more, and my little Loki-muses jumped on the idea and ran with it…. Don't know where this is going to end exactly, it's obviously not there yet, but it looks like it'll be a fun time getting there, wot?

Loki's Plan

He wasn't sure just when she had become so important in his eyes, but Loki was acutely aware of the exact moment he'd realized how much Daidouji Mayura meant to him.  He had been quite ready to return to Asgard, with more-than-vague plans of confronting Odin over the Alfadder's treatment of his children, especially Hel, but Mayura's obvious distress at his being "gone" had delayed his departure.  He had thought by erasing her memory of him he would be able to leave her in peace, but as he watched her, all _his_ memories of _her_ came back to him, and he **knew** in that instant.  If he wiped her memory she might not suffer, but he definitely would.  Impossible as it seemed, he was in love with her.  He, who had lived thousands of years, was in love with a girl whose entire lifespan would be a minute fraction of that.  And the worst of it was, she saw him as a _child_.  Although with her frantic searching he did wonder if that was indeed all she saw him as.  

His children were just as happy to stay, and Fenrir even reassured him about the need to take revenge for Hel.  He didn't explain to them about Mayura, but then he didn't need to.  Ecchan, remarkable little being that he was, was the one to say it - and so subtly too.

When they got back to the Agency, Mayura was there...and she was crying.  He swore internally.  What he _really_ wanted to do was take her in his arms _right now_ - in his kakusei form - and kiss her tears away, but that would only confuse her.  He would have to continue to be Loki-kun for her - for a little while, he was not well-known for his patience - until she was secure in his presence again, then he could slowly acquaint her with the truth.

Yamino-kun's worried expression the next morning after he went to answer the door had Loki down to see what was wrong on the double.  He wouldn't put it past Odin to take advantage of his decision to delay retribution by making a preemptive strike.  He was greatly relieved not to sense Odin's aura, although whatever was in the basket definitely came from Asgard.  It had a sweet smell to it that reminded him of Idun, but why would she be sending him anything?

He nearly laughed out loud when he saw what she'd given him.  There were subtle hints and there were blatantly obvious suggestions, and this definitely fell into the latter category.

"Loki-sama, how would Idun-san know to send you apples for Mayura-san?" Yamino asked.

"It wouldn't surprise me if she's been watching what was happening down here, and I'm sure she's not the only one.  Bragi's probably had a hand in this, and I'll bet these were delivered by Fulla, which means Frigg is involved as well.  Not that any of them would speak up against Odin, after seeing what happened to Freya, but at least I know not all of Asgard is against me."

Evidently Mayura had gotten tired of waiting upstairs, and they didn't notice her approach until she was right behind them.

"What is it, Loki-kun?" she asked, trying to see what he was holding.

"Ah!  Mayura-san, I didn't notice you there!" Yamino said, throwing Loki an almost guilty look.

"It's a thank-you gift from an old friend I helped out a few years ago." Loki told her.

"But the label is in some weird writing.  It looks kindof like romaji, but I don't recognize the characters.  Mystery!"

"They're Norse runes." Loki sighed.  "And they're _not_ a mystery."

"What do they say?" Mayura asked

"We'll talk about it later." Loki told her.  "Well, there's no point in us standing here on the doorstep, why don't we go back to the sitting room?  And Mayura, I'm pretty sure it's almost time for you to go to school isn't it?" he asked with a cute grin.

Mayura looked at her watch.  "Kyaa!  I'll be late if I don't run!  Ja Loki-kun, Yamino-kun, I'll see you after school!" she called as she grabbed her bag out of the genkan and took off in the direction of her school.

Loki smiled fondly after her, then he and Yamino went back inside.

All day at school, Mayura was _thinking_, and not about her classes.  Even with yesterday's traumas, she hadn't forgotten her... questions... about Loki-kun.  It had, in fact, only added more questions to an already-long list.  Including 'Who was that handsome man who said he was a God, and why did he remind me so strongly of Loki-kun?'

As she left school, Mayura was plotting ways to corner Loki-kun and get some straight answers out of him without being handed over to Yamino-kun so she could be lied to again.

"I just...  I just wish I knew for sure what was going on!" she complained out loud when she was about a block from the Enjaku.  "Mou... It's all just so confusing!"

"I can help you with that." came a voice from behind her.

Mayura spun around to see a man standing not two feet from her.  He looked neither young nor old, but he had on a hat that hid most of his face, so it wasn't easy to judge.

"You want to know about Loki, am I right?  I can help you there."  The man reached out to touch Mayura's forehead.  "Just remember, young lady; nothing comes free, in this or any other world."  Mayura was surrounded by a purplish-red burst of energy and she screamed as knowledge was literally blasted into her.

Sitting at his desk, staring out the window, Loki felt the power and heard the scream at the same time.  He knew that voice.  And that power signature.  He was out of his chair, into his kakusei form and out the door almost before he had time to think.

When he got to her, Mayura was collapsed on the pavement and Odin was nowhere to be seen.  Loki gathered her prone form into his arms and scanned the area for any sign of his adversary, but he seemed to be gone now, his goal - whatever it was - having been accomplished.

Mayura was breathing slow and steady, and she didn't appear outwardly injured, but Loki was all-too-aware that there was more than one way to hurt a person, and not all wounds inflicted were physical ones.  Odin, he reflected, seemed particularly fond of causing psychological damage, rather than getting his hands bloody.

When Loki got back to the agency (and within his wards) he began to swear.  Loudly and viciously.  Yamino and Fenrir came running down the stairs to meet him, and Ecchan was there as well.

"Daddy!"  "Loki-sama, what happened?!"  "Loki-tama?"

"Odin." Loki said darkly, that one name all he needed to explain the situation.

"Is she...?"

"She's not bleeding, but I haven't tried to wake her yet..."

"I'll turn down the guest bed." Yamino suggested.

"No, mine's the most comfortable -and in the best-warded room - I'll put her there." Loki said pensively.

Ignoring how much he disliked doing it, Loki changed back to Loki-kun before he tried to wake Mayura up.   The last thing he wanted to do was startle her when she had just been attacked.  He leaned over the bed and laid a hand on her forehead.

"Wake up now, Mayura." he called softly, accompanying his words with a tiny surge of power.

Mayura's eyes opened, then closed again as she pulled herself into a ball with a whimper of fear and pain.

"What's wrong?" he asked her.

"Hurts.  My head hurts.  And everything's too bright.  Loki-kun..."  As she said his name, her eyes shot open.  "Loki!  You're... but you're _not_ evil and nasty, I _know_ you're not!  It's all a lie, right?"  She looked at him beseechingly.

"What's all a lie Mayura?" he asked, concerned.  He had _not_ missed the change in her mode of address to him, and he had been here in Japan long enough to know how significant that was.  "What happened to you?"

"Well, I was thinking I wished I understood better about you and all the things that happened, and then there was this man with a hat and he said he could tell me, only nothing comes for free, and then he touched my forehead, and it **hurt** and then I must have passed out and I woke up here... and all of a sudden I _know_ stuff, like how you're from this place called Asgard and you did nasty sneaky stuff to Narugami-kun and Kaitou-san and all kinds of other people and you're not really a little boy, you're that guy I was talking to yesterday...  But Loki-kun, I _know_ you!  You're not mean or nasty or anything like that, how can that be you?" Mayura finally wailed.

"Sometimes when we do things that are not the nicest but still necessary, people get the wrong impression." Loki said sadly.  He shifted into his kakusei form, making sure Mayura saw it happen, then sat on the edge of the bed and took her into his arms.  "And yes, this is really me.  I was going to explain soon anyway.  After I decided to stay here yesterday I had planned to start explaining things to you slowly, but now, thanks to Odin, I guess I don't have that luxury.  Would you be willing to hear my side of the story?"

Mayura nodded, so he tucked her head under his chin (since she didn't seem to be complaining about being held) and began to tell his story, starting with Odin's request that he bring the Alfadder Heimdall's right eye.

As she sat there listening to Loki's melodic voice, Mayura slowly became increasingly aware of just how close he was holding her, and she blushed bright red.

"...so I decided to stay, since now I can choose when I want to leave..."  Loki glanced down and noticed her blush, and he chuckled.  "And also since I didn't like seeing you so upset."  He pulled back just far enough to reach down and tilt her face up to meet her eyes with his own.  She blushed even brighter, if that was possible, and tried to pull away, but he was having none of it.  He leaned in and captured her lips with his own, and smirked internally as she quickly relaxed into the kiss.

"Been wanting to that for a while now." he whispered in her ear.

"I was too, although it made me a little confused since I thought you were only ten." Mayura admitted.

Loki laughed and tapped her forehead.  "Poor confused child."

"Mou... Loki-kun, I am _not_ a child!"

"Hmm...  You're right, you're not." he said, looking her up and down as best he could with her held so close (which was mostly down and not much up, not that he was complaining - no, not one bit!)

"Loki-ku..."

He cut her off with a brief peck.  "There's no need for the -kun anymore." he told her.

"But Loki-ku..."

He stopped her again.

"Fine.  Loki then..."

"That's right." he murmured as he closed in again to kiss her deeply as a reward.

Mayura almost forgot what she was going to say as she lost herself in the kiss.  When she did remember, one hand was around his back, another one in his hair, and his tongue was doing intriguing things with hers.  Her eyes opened wide and she pushed him back slightly.

"Mmph!"

"What is it?" Loki asked a little petulantly.

"That man...Odin...what did he mean when he said nothing comes for free?" she asked, a worried little quaver in her voice.

" 'Nothing comes for free.'  That's Odin all right." Loki said, tucking her close again and muttering a few choice words in Old Norse under his breath.  "He has never given anything out of the kindness of his heart.  For every boon he grants he exacts a price, and we can just hope that he intended the pain you suffered already as sufficient payment."  

"He might do worse?"

"He's Odin." Loki shrugged.  He heard a snuffling sound at the door and smiled.  "If you're feeling up to it, I believe the boys were worried about you as well." 

"I think I'll be okay." Mayura nodded as she stood up out of bed. 

And there I leave you for a little while, as I thought it was the best place to break.  Hopefully there'll be more of this sometime soon, although it's not priority one, that goes to my Magic Kaitou fic that I promised to have the next chapter of out my December .;;

Amaya the sleepless, listening to her cats chase each other around the house at ungodly hours


	2. Part 2

Well, sooner than I thought, here's part two.  I honestly was meaning to work on my other story! *sobs*

Oh well, this one's turning out to be fun, and I have lots of a later part written too, now I just have to connect them up.

Still no posting schedule for this, parts come out when they decide to.

Enjoy!

Loki's Plan pt 2

While Mayura was chatting with the boys (and fawning over Ecchan, whom she had proclaimed to be the cutest "Mystery" she had ever seen) in Loki's room, Loki retired to his study to think.  He had a lot to think about, too.  He hadn't been able to detect any residual spells on Mayura, but his skills had never lain in the detection of latent spellwork.  He needed to take her to someone he could trust who could tell if Odin had left them any nasty surprises.  The only trouble was that of all the Gods presently in Midgard, the only ones he could trust not to betray him to Odin were Thor, Freyr and Freya... and, since the trouble with Hel, _maybe_ the Norns.  Thor was out, since his spell sensitivity was virtually nil.  Freyr had plenty of sensitivity, but he went all to pieces around his "Yamato Nadeshiko", so he was out too.  Freya... well, if it had been anyone male who had been attacked Loki might have gone to her, but she would be sure to see Mayura as a rival and might do more harm than good.  All that left him with was the Norns.  

"Right.  I guess this is as good a chance as any to test the level of their contrition." Loki said finally.

So that was one step, anyway.

The other thing on his mind was the apples Idun had sent.  The thought that he might be able to keep Mayura with him for more than just a few years was oddly reassuring.  Loki wasn't used to feeling so... not dependent exactly, but he definitely wanted her around as much as possible.  It was impossible to be lonely around her, and, Loki freely admitted, he'd been lonely far too long, even when he was among the other Gods back in Asgard.

"Are you sure you're feeling better now, Mayura-san?" Yamino asked Mayura when he noticed her surreptitiously rubbing at her temples.

"Aa, just a lingering headache." she said with a wave of her hand.

Fenrir hopped from where he had been sitting on Yamino's lap over to the bed and gave Mayura a thorough once-over, sniffing her hands and face, and everywhere in between.

"Gah!  Niisan, what are you _doing_?" Yamino objected on Mayura's behalf, since she was shocked into silence.

"I'm checking to make sure she's okay." Fenrir explained in a disparaging tone.  "Keh!  She stinks of Odin, there must still be some of his magic within her." He sniffed a little more, and his tail started wagging.  "I smell Niichan!  He must have been the one who brought Odin down here."

"Niichan?" Mayura asked.

"Our older half-brother, Sleipnir." Yamino explained.  "Odin rides him when he needs to cross the worlds."

"Rides?"

"Sleipnir-aniki is a horse, the same way Niisan here is a wolf."

Fenrir jumped down and, without another word, trotted out of the room to report his findings to Loki.

"Daddy..."

Loki's musings were interrupted by his puppy-son.

"What is it, Fenrir?"

"Mayura still stinks of Odin.  In fact, your scent is being actively erased by his.  I don't know what it means exactly, but..."

"It means I need to get whatever nasty 'gift' he left us dealt with as soon as possible." Loki frowned darkly.  He hurried back to his room, with Fenrir at his heels.

He arrived in the room just as Mayura was rubbing at her temples again, and sat down next to her.

"Mayura, I've been thinking about Odin.  I'm almost positive he did more than just give you some knowledge, so I want you to come with me to see the Norns."

"They're the ones who were 'White Night Fortune Telling' right?"

Loki smiled at her to conceal his worry.  "That's them."

"But weren't they against you?"

"For a time.  But they were manipulated by Odin, and there is little they resent more than being someone else's pawns.  I'm sure that if we ask for their help for your sake they will at least be willing to discuss the idea.  Are you feeling up to a little walk?"

Mayura nodded and Loki kissed her temple and wrapped an arm around her waist as she got up.  It was a good thing he did, too; the moment she stepped through his bedroom door she screamed and clutched at her head, and would have collapsed to the ground if he hadn't been holding her.  He wrapped his other arm around her and carried her back to the bed, where she sat panting and whimpering.

"Mayura...?" Loki asked softly.

"It hurt... so much...  Like my head was going to explode." she whispered.

Yamino's jaw dropped almost as much as it might have in his true form, and Fenrir stared openly at her.  Poor confused little Ecchan floated nervously around Mayura's head, trying to figure out what was wrong.

"Daddy, did she just..."

"What did you say, Mayura?" Loki asked carefully.

"I said I felt like my head would explode." she said a little louder.  She was also speaking Japanese this time.  

"Yes you did, but you were speaking _my_ language, Old Norse, not your natural Japanese." he told her.

"I was?  Mystery!" Mayura said excitedly, then winced at the volume of her own voice.

"Loki-sama, what's going on?" Yamino asked.

"Probably the only reason Mayura even woke up in the first place was the extra wards on this room.  Odin's spell obviously wasn't finished running its course, and as soon as she got outside the wards it kicked in again.  I can't counter Odin's power myself, but I also don't want to leave Mayura...  Yamino-kun, would you be willing to find the Norns and bring them here?"

"Of course, Loki-sama." he said, and quickly left.

"Daddy, I'll guard the front door." Fenrir offered.

"Thank you Fenrir." Loki nodded.

Ecchan followed Fenrir out of the room as well, and after they were gone, and the door shut behind them, Mayura bowed her head.

"Loki, I'm sorry." she said, her voice trembling on the verge of sobs.

"What on earth for?" he asked, pulling her into his lap and bringing her face up so she was looking at him.

"This is all my fault.  If I hadn't been so anxious to find out about you..."

"Odin would still have found some way to hurt me through you." Loki finished for her.

"But I said it out loud - that I wanted to figure out about you - then he was there...  It was like I _called_ him!"

Loki chuckled wryly.  "Even the great Odin can't cross the worlds with that kind of speed.  Most likely he was already here on Midgard just looking for an opportunity to hurt me somehow.  He might even have been following you for a while before he made his move."  He smiled at her.  "Besides, taking the blame like this isn't like you, Mayura."

She laughed a little.  "You're right, it's not."

Having succeeded in diverting Mayura's feelings of guilt, Loki decided to distract her from her lingering headache by kissing her slowly and languorously, taking his time to enjoy the lips he'd wanted for some time now.  Even before he realized his true feelings, there had always been some physical attraction on his part, and he was glad to be able to fulfill at least part of that urge. 


	3. Part 3

And yes, yet another part of this is done!  I have to put one note here before I let you all read it, though.  Somebody commented about Loki being married already, to Sigyn.  Yes, I am aware of that relationship, but given the non-linear nature of time, I'm assuming that the events of this story took place after Loki's liaison with Angrboda but before he married Sigyn.  He knew about her though, since she was a part of the stories surrounding Ragnarok, which all the gods knew.

Enjoy!

Loki's Plan, Part 3

It didn't take Yamino long to find the Norns, they had, after all, set up their fortune telling tent in the same park as before.  There wasn't much of a line-up, but polite and patient though he might be, Yamino knew this wasn't the time to be waiting in line.  He walked up to Skuld where she stood at the front of the tent and bowed before her.

"Yamino-san?" Skuld said, surprised by his sudden obeisance.

"Skuld-sama, I have come to beg help from you and your sisters, on behalf of my father and Daidouji Mayura." he said formally.

"Mayura-san?  Has she gotten herself into trouble somehow?" Skuld asked.

"Something of that nature.  I think it is best not discussed in such an... open place." Yamino said carefully.

"I understand.  Is time an issue?" she asked, looking at the four or five people still in line.

"It does seem to be."

"Alright then."  A rather giggly schoolgirl left the tent and Skuld slipped in to talk to her older sisters.

A minute later all three came back out, and Verdandi handed out vouchers to their remaining clients, apologizing for their need to close for the day and promising to bring them right to the front of the line when they came back.

"Yamino-san, please come in." Urda gestured to the tent. "No need to fear, the interior is well-warded."

He followed the Norns in, and the four of them sat around the table.

"Now, what is this about Mayura-san needing our help?" Urda asked.

"About half an hour ago she was attacked as she was on her way to our home.  Loki-sama rushed to her, but by the time he got there she was already unconscious."

"And her attacker was...?" Verdandi prompted.

"Odin-sama.  He forced knowledge of Loki's past onto her.  It caused her to pass out, and we strongly suspect that's not all it did.  They sent me because although we were able to revive Mayura, she started screaming the instant she tried to leave the heavily-warded room she was in."

The Norns looked at each other and nodded.

"Since it's for Mayura-san, we will help." Verdandi said.

It had barely been more than twenty minutes from the time Yamino left when Ecchan appeared in Loki's bedroom.

"Loki-tama, Yamino-tan ish back!" he announced.

Loki looked up from where he had been nibbling at Mayura's collarbone.  

"Did he bring the Norns with him?"

"Hai deshu!"

Loki leaned his forehead against Mayura's.  "I suppose you would rather not be seen in such a... compromising position?" he said with a rather wicked half-grin.

Mayura, blinking, realized that she was on Loki's lap, he had one hand on her back under her blouse, the fingers of the other halfway under the waistband of her skirt, and the front of her blouse was askew, her ribbon and the top button undone.  She blushed crimson.  "Um yes... I mean no... I mean..."

Loki smiled gently at her and lifted her off his lap, settling her in the middle of the bed and straightening her clothes.  He ran his thumb over the reddened marks he'd left on her collarbone with an air of satisfaction before carefully concealing them under her midi collar.  "Perfect." he pronounced with one last light kiss to the tip of her nose just as they heard a knock at his bedroom door.

Loki stood up and winked at Mayura as he opened the door.  In the doorway were all three of the Norns, flanked by Yamino and Fenrir.

"Thank you for coming." he said with a polite nod.

"We came for Mayura-san's sake, not yours." Urda said sternly.

"I understand.  Yamino-kun, would you fetch some chairs for our guests." Loki said, sitting on the edge of the bed.  He turned to Mayura.  "I know you've met them before, but I should probably introduce them properly.  These are the Norse Goddesses of fate, the Norns.  Urda, the eldest, represents the past, Verdandi the present, and Skuld represents the future."

"I can't really say 'hajimemashite' since I've met you all before, but it is nice to know who you truly are." Mayura smiled.  "And you really _can_ tell the future?  Mystery!" she crowed excitedly.

Urda rolled her eyes, Verdandi shrugged and Skuld giggled.

Yamino returned with the chairs, then excused himself and took Fenrir with him.  With the attack on Mayura, he wanted to double-check the house's protections and wards.

"So, the whole story first." Urda said, "Then we'll see what we can do for Mayura-san."

"Mayura, why don't you start with you heading here after school." Loki suggested.

Mayura explained to the Norns about her lingering curiosity about "Loki-kun" and the "man in the weird hat" who had appeared and offered to explain things.  She told them about the intense pain which was followed by blessed unconsciousness.

At that point Loki took over and told them how he had heard Mayura scream and found her unconscious and alone, and then, upon bringing her home and waking her up, their discovery that she now knew the truth of Loki's background. 

When the whole tale had been told, leaving out no details (except those which dealt with the feelings Loki and Mayura had expressed for each other, which they both considered nobody's business but theirs) the three Norns looked at each other.

"We need to examine Mayura-san now, and we need you out of the room." Verdandi told Loki.

Mayura looked a little nervous at that announcement, so Loki caught her hand and squeezed it briefly, before leaving the room with a smile and a wink.

Loki caught up with Yamino as he was checking the wards on the basement.

"How are things looking Yamino-kun?" he asked.

"All the wards seem to be holding for now, Loki-sama.  Although we might want to look at reinforcing the ones on the front door, they've been worn down a bit."

"Daddy, do you think Odin knew about the apples?  Is that why he attacked Mayura?" Fenrir asked.

"More likely he simply saw an opportunity to hurt me and took it.  Although it is possible he knew about the apples.  Yamino-kun, you did put them in the warded storage area, didn't you?"

"I did.  I even put some extra wards over them.

"Good.  Those are precious, and I wouldn't want to risk losing them."

After Loki left the room, Mayura looked at all three of the Norns.  "You're going to examine me?  Should I lie down?  Or sit up?  What do you want me to do?" she asked.

"You can sit where you are, whatever makes you comfortable." Urda said with a smile.

"We won't be doing anything physical, after all." Verdandi added.

Mayura shifted so that she was a little more comfortable and leaned against the headboard.  The Norns arranged themselves so they were around the bed with Urda on the left, Verdandi at the foot and Skuld on the right.  

For the first time in her life, Mayura was able to See the aura of power at work, and she was absolutely fascinated.  She watched the waves of what looked like purple light pass over her, and felt them tingle as they passed through her.  Neither she nor the Norns said anything for the five minutes or so it took them to examine her and look for what Odin might have done, but when they were finished, the three sisters gave each other significant looks.

"I wonder why we never thought to check her _wyrd_ before." Skuld said, irony colouring her tones.

"Is there something wrong?" Mayura asked, "Will you be able to fix it so I can go outside the room again?"

"We can remove the spell Odin put on you, but unfortunately it had an effect we weren't anticipating."

"An effect you weren't anticipating?" Mayura was sounding more than a little worried now.

"Your fate - _wyrd_, as we see it - is not that of a mortal woman.  Your true nature was hidden inside you, dormant like a seed in winter, and Odin's touch was like the touch of spring to that seed." Verdandi told her.

"But both Mama and Papa were normal!  So if I'm not ningen, what am I?" Mayura asked plaintively.

"At this point you are in flux, but your _wyrd_ is that of one of the Aesir, and according to it, your name ought to be Sigyn." Urda said with a hint of a grin.  "Loki will no doubt find _that_ little tidbit of information... intriguing."

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, I think we'll leave Loki to explain." Verdandi giggled.  

Skuld pouted.

"Now, if you would come a bit closer, we'll get rid of that nasty little gift of Odin's, then I think we'd better talk to Loki." Urda said.

Each of the Norns laid a hand on her head and closed her eyes, and Mayura felt a wrench as something came loose inside, and then they pulled back and the lingering headache she'd been suffering from was gone, and she felt exhausted.

"Why am I so tired?" she asked.

"Your psyche was hurt, and you need sleep and dreams to heal it." Skuld told her.

"Why don't you sleep for a bit, and we'll talk to Loki about what we discovered." Verdandi said kindly.

Mayura nodded sleepily and snuggled down into the blankets and pillows on top of the bed as the Norns left the room. 


	4. Part 4

Well folks, count yourselves lucky, I managed to get this to a point worth posting tonight, and tomorrow I fly out into the frozen wilds of Manitoba with no computer access for a week!  Please enjoy, and hopefully when I get back I will have more of this story (and some of my others as well) for your enjoyment!

Loki's Plan Part 4

Loki was in his study when the Norns found him, and from the expressions on their faces he wasn't quite sure what to expect.  Urda had a rather feral grin on her face, Verdandi was smiling beatifically, and Skuld was pouting and looking put out.

Skuld spoke first.  "She was the reason you decided to stay, wasn't she, Loki-sama?"

"Mayura?" he asked.  Lying to the Norns when they had agreed to help was a bad idea, he decided. "She was a big part of the reason, yes." he admitted.

"Because you care for her, right?" Verdandi asked, her smile not changing.

Loki sighed.  Why did he have to get into this with them? "Yes," he grated, "because I... care for her."

"I can see you're worried about her.  Don't be, she's safe now, we removed Odin's spell and put her into a healing sleep, but we discovered something else at the same time." Urda told him.  "Her wyrd is not human.  The form and persona known as Daidouji Mayura is merely a cocoon, from which an Aesir will emerge."

"What are you talking about?" Loki exclaimed, "Mayura?  Aesir?  But how..."

"We don't know." Verdandi admitted reluctantly, "But we do know who."

"Sigyn." Urda said in a triumphant tone.

"She's... But... But she's..." Loki spluttered.  If he hadn't been seated already he would have had to sit down.

"Your wife, or she will be." Skuld said a little sadly.

"But Mayura is - well, I guess was - completely without Sight, it was only since Odin touched her..." Loki finally managed to get a coherent sentence out.  "This could all be part of Odin's trap."

"Odin's granting her knowledge was the trigger, yes, but we are perfectly able to differentiate between what is natural and what has his energy signature.  Trust us, this would have happened eventually, Mayura will be Sigyn, it's just happening a little sooner is all." Verdandi explained.

"How much did you tell her?" Loki asked.

"Only that she should be one of the Aesir named Sigyn, and that you would explain the rest." Urda's grin turned positively evil.

Loki dropped his head into his hands and groaned.  "Thanks... I think."

Even Skuld snickered at that.

"Now that we've removed Odin's spell, the transformation should slow down, but you'll need to get some apples for her, and it's up to you how to get in touch with Idun, we can't help you there." Verdandi warned him.

"That part I have well in hand." Loki laughed, but refused to elaborate.

"_One more thing, since I know you too well Loki Laufeyiarson_." Urda said sternly in Old Norse (just to ensure he got the full meaning of what she was telling him), "_Mayura is in flux right now, and that is a very delicate condition.  It would be easy for her to be unintentionally hurt by your ardent attentions.  You may touch her - **gently**, mind you now - but until she has had an apple you **may not** make her yours.  Do you understand me?_"

Loki sighed deeply.  "_I understand_," he answered in Old Norse, "and how long will it be until she is ready for her apples?"

"At least a week or two, so I suggest you find other ways to keep yourself occupied until then." Skuld grated.

Loki smiled, although it didn't reach his eyes, and rose from his seat.  "Well ladies, I appreciate all your help, and I'm sure we'll be calling on you again before long, but right now I have some explaining to do, not least to my sons, so if you will excuse me, I'll see you out."

"Of course." Urda said with a kinder smile as the three of them rose to go.

After making polite farewells to the Norns, Loki took both his sons into the sitting room to explain things to them.

"Loki-sama, did the Norns fix Odin's spell?  You look so worried." Yamino asked.

"They did, but..."

"Daddy, is the mystery girl okay?" Fenrir yipped as he jumped up into Loki's lap.

Loki closed his eyes and tried to figure out how to explain all this.  "She's fine, for now, but Mayura isn't just 'the mystery girl' anymore."

"Loki-sama, what do you mean?"

"She's Aesir, or she will be.  The Norns assure me it was her _wyrd_ all along, and in no way a trap from Odin."

"Aesir?!  But Daddy, who is she then?"  Fenrir could scent his father's reluctance, and it only made him that much more curious.

"Well..." Loki vacillated, twin spots of colour appearing high on his cheeks.  "According to the Norns, she's Sigyn." he muttered reluctantly.

Yamino coughed politely, hiding his smile behind his hand.  "That's a bit of a shock." he said.  His eyes held a gleam that rivaled his father's at his most mischievous.  "How did Mayura-san take the news?"

"She doesn't know.  That is to say, the Norns told her that she's Sigyn, but they didn't explain anything of what that means, and Odin's spell doesn't seem to have conferred that particular bit of information."

"They left that for you, ne Daddy?" Fenrir wagged his tail.

"They did indeed."

"How much are you going to tell her?" Yamino asked.

"I don't know, Yamino-kun.  I have to tell her something, since the Norns said I would, but...  Ours is not the happiest of prophecies, and I don't want to frighten her with the ghosts of the future."

Fenrir laid his chin sadly on Loki's knee.  "But that won't be for years and years, right Daddy?"

"With Odin the way he is now?  I don't know how long or short our time might be, Fenrir, I just don't know." Loki admitted with a haunted look in his eyes.

"Loki-sama, why don't you go sit with Mayura-san and explain things to her.  I'll make some tea and cakes and bring them in to you both."

"She's probably still sleeping, but if I know Mayura she'll want her explanation the moment she wakes up, and will come looking for me if I'm not there." Loki sighed, "That tea sounds like a good idea, Yamino-kun."

Narugami-kun was walking his latest restaurant cart part-time job along to a new spot closer to the local park in hopes of attracting more of the after-cram-school crowd when he felt a wash of power crawl over his skin.

"Father?" he said, surprised.

He looked around, but he didn't see Odin anywhere.  Then he heard the echo of hooves, and a high-pitched scintillating whinny, and he knew the Allfadder _had_ been there, but was now gone again.

'This job should be done in an hour or so, then I'll go check on Loki.' Thor thought to himself, patting Mjolnir where the hammer-cum-boken rested under the counter.

When Loki opened his bedroom door and looked inside, he found Mayura cutely curled up in a nest of blankets like a kitten.  He sat on the bed and gently picked her head up and laid it in his lap so he could stroke her hair.

"So, you're my Sigyn are you, Mayura?  My faithful one?  It solves a number of problems for us, you know, not the least of which being my _wyrd_, but it brings other problems with it as well.  I only hope we can be strong enough together to overcome the odds... and _wyrd_. 


	5. Part 5

I have returned from the wilds, with two new chapters (although part six needs a quick bit of fixing before it's ready…I should be posting it before tomorrow anyway)

Sorry this chapter is a little shorter, but I really felt this was the best place to end it, the next one should be longer!

Made one little change in formatting to note (and I'll go back and fix the other chapters when I get a chance)

"_this is talking on the other end of a phone conversation_"

"**_this is talking in Old Norse_**"

Hope that reduces confusion and whatnot!

Oh yes, and ENJOY!

Loki's Plan, Part 5

The hour it took Mayura to wake seemed like an eternity to Loki.  Although he was happy enough to sit and hold her in his lap, he was not looking forward to having to _explain_, and the longer it took her to wake the more time he had to think about what her possible reactions might be.  He didn't even really know how she felt about him, although she hadn't seemed adverse to the snuggling and kisses earlier, not to mention the slightly-more-than-kisses they'd been engaged in when the Norns arrived.  Even for him women were unpredictable things, though, and he'd never been a genius at reading them.  Witness Freya's obsession with him as evidence.  He'd had no idea how she felt until she had tried to kill him, but after that looking back, he realized he really ought to have known how she felt, as she'd made it - if not obvious - at least pretty clear if you were paying attention.

Mayura murmured and began to wake, turning over in his lap and burrowing into it to avoid the lights on her sleepy eyes, and Loki was hard-pressed to remain... calm.  As she woke up a little further, however, she seemed to realize where she was and she blushed and turned back over to look up at him.

"Loki?" she asked sleepily.

"Hai, it's me, Mayura.  How are you feeling now?" he asked solicitously.

She sat up and smiled.  "Lots better, my headache is gone and everything.  But Loki, the Norns said something about me being somebody called Sigyn?  They seemed to think it was funny for some reason, and they said you would have to tell me what it meant."

Loki sighed.  "I couldn't persuade you to let me put off the explanation for a few years,  could I?" he asked with a slightly ironic smile.

Mayura frowned.

"I thought not."  He sighed again. "Well, the simple explanation is this:  As do all living things, I have a **_wyrd_**.  **_Wyrd_** is an Old Norse word, and it's a bit difficult to translate into Japanese, but in the simplest terms, it could be equated with 'unmei' or fate, and 'yogen' or prophecy.  I have known for a long time about the **_wyrd_** I will have, and how it intertwines with those of the various Aesir and Vanir.  Part of that destiny is that I will have three special women in my life, the third of whom  I have yet to meet.  That third woman has always been referred to in the prophecies as an Aesir, and her name is given as Sigyn - which means "the faithful one" in Old Norse - since she will stay by my side through troubles I will face."

"What troubles?" Mayura asked, a worried frown creasing her forehead.

"You don't need to worry about that, it shouldn't come to be an issue for some time yet," he reassured her.

"Wait... You said her name is Sigyn?  You mean I'm..." Her eyes widened.

Loki's grin was completely unfeigned this time.  "Yes, you're that same Sigyn the legends speak of...  My second wife and mother to my youngest children."

"oh." she said and looked away, a bright blush forming on her cheeks.

"That doesn't bother you does it?" he asked softly, "That you will be my wife?"  He tilted her face up to look at him.

"Noooo...." she shook her head, "It's all just a little sudden is all..."

Loki laughed.  "You're telling me!  I almost had fits when the Norns told me who you were, but I'm not upset about it, just surprised that you're here in Japan on Midgard and born mortal, instead of in the Norse lands or Asgard and born to the Aesir."

"So, I will be Loki's wife..." Mayura mused thoughtfully.

"It doesn't have to be right away if you don't feel you're ready yet." Loki said, stroking her cheek, "I can wait a little while, I'm not completely without patience you know."

Mayura leaned into his hand and smiled.  "I graduate from high school in a month..."

"The Norns told me we have to wait a couple of weeks before I can make you fully mine in any case." Loki said softly as he leaned in to kiss her.

She moaned and abandoned herself completely into his embrace, and he had to physically hold himself back from taking her then and there.  She just felt so _good_ and _right_ in his arms.

Outside the door, Fenrir snickered in a most un-wolflike manner and wagged his tail once, then trotted back to the kitchen where Yamino was making dinner.

"Things seem to have gone over pretty well, it looks like the mystery girl doesn't have any problem with becoming Daddy's wife." he reported with a tongue-lolling wolfish grin.

"Are they coming down then?" Yamino asked.

"No way!" Fenrir laughed.  "But maybe I _should_ go up and get Daddy, given what he said the Norns instructed."

"What was that, Niisan?" 

Fenrir explained what he had overheard, and the amusement was plain in his voice.  And on Yamino's face as well, as he listened.

Loki finally pulled back from the kiss and looked down at Mayura.  Her gaze, when she returned it, was somewhat unfocused, but definitely not unhappy.

"I'm so glad you didn't leave yesterday," she whispered.

"So am I." Loki laughed.  He rubbed her back soothingly.  "I knew there was something about you that called to me and made it so I couldn't just leave you here."

Mayura snuggled into Loki and smiled into his chest.  Then she laughed.  "Papa's going to have a fit," she said.

Loki laughed out loud and fell backwards onto the bed, drawing Mayura down with him so that she lay partly on top of him.  "Mayura-papa is going to have a few fits, since I'll have to explain all of the story.  Seeing as how his daughter will be a Goddess and all..."

"Loki, will I have to go away to this 'Asgard' place?" Mayura asked more seriously, "Once I turn into Sigyn, I mean."

"Maybe eventually, but I wasn't planning on heading back there just yet myself.  Once I calmed down a little from being incensed about his treatment of my daughter Hel, I realized that if I'm going to confront Odin I will need some sort of an advantage or edge that he doesn't know about.  I do no honor to her memory by attacking mindlessly." he said sadly.

"You're so sure that she died..."  Mayura tried to think of some way to comfort Loki.  She knew how hurt she had felt when she realized her mother was dead and not coming back, and she imagined he must feel even worse at the loss of his daughter.

"I'm pretty sure," he said solemnly.  "She had used up so much of her energy and life force just to appear normal and operate here on Midgard that when I finally calmed her she was like a guttering candle, and then she just... let go.  I would like to hope she merely returned to her realm of Niflheim, but I simply don't think she had the strength left at that point."

Mayura could almost hear the tears in his voice, although he wasn't actually crying, so she shifted up to shyly kiss him.  It was the first time she had initiated a kiss between them so it was tentative and a little awkward, but it seemed to be just what Loki needed.

"Thank you." he whispered and gently drew her all the way on top of him then rolled, propping himself over her on his elbows.  Then he laughed.  "You just quit encouraging me, jouchan.  I told you what the Norns said."

"I encourage you?  You hardly seem to need encouragement!" she laughed breathlessly as Loki moved his kisses down her neck and loosened her top to expose her collarbones again.  He trailed his lips along the left, which he had marked earlier, soothing the passion-marks.

"I will admit I'm pretty easy to encourage.  Although I may not claim you fully yet, I want to, so I'll ask this first:_  **May I stake my claim upon your person and your heart now, so that we both know it, even if the rest of the world does not?**_" he asked formally in Old Norse, "**_May I place my lips upon you as your intended?_**"

Mayura knew, somewhere inside, that there was more to these words than there seemed, and she felt sure that there was something specific she should say in return.  She opened her mouth and the words came almost without thinking.  "**_My heart is already yours, and my person shall be so when you deem it is time.  You are indeed my intended, and should so place your lips to me that all might know our pledge._**"

Loki breathed deeply, drinking in the sweet scent of her as he placed his lips over her heart and kissed her there, drawing her flesh into his mouth to leave a livid red mark which would just be visible at the base of her school uniform's collar.

"**_Now all will know you are spoken for, and they must answer to me if they touch you._**" he said as he looked up at her, completing the ritual.

"How did I know those words?  Mystery!" Mayura said softly as she looked down at Loki.

He just laughed and kissed her one more time before reluctantly sitting her up and rearranging her top, this time to show off the mark to its best effect, and helping her out of bed.

"Come on, we should leave this room before I forget myself and take things farther than I should." he said, taking her hand as he opened the door.


	6. Part 6

And here's the next part!  _ I just keep cranking these things out!  Hope you're all enjoying them!_

Loki's Plan, Part 6

Narugami, with a great feeling of trepidation (he would never admit to anything more, that smacked of cowardice), approached Loki's home.  Nothing appeared to be wrong from the outside, and that, at least, was a relief, but he wouldn't be happy until he had seen that all inside were in one piece.

Yamino stormed to the door and pulled it quickly open, only to turn flustered when he saw who was waiting on the front step.

"N...Narugami-san, what are you doing here?" he said uncertainly.  Thor always discomfited him, even though he was not in any immediate danger from the Thunder God.  Close on his heels, Fenrir growled.

"Yo, Megane.  I just dropped by to see how you guys were, since I haven't talked to Loki since he decided to stay here on Midgard.  Can I come in?" Narugami said, making an obvious attempt to be subtle.

"Of course." Yamino nodded and both he and Fenrir moved to let him past.

Once inside, the Thunder God's attitude changed, becoming somehow less _Narugami_ and more _Thor_.

"I felt Father and heard a horse today, and I wanted to make sure all was well here." he said as they entered the study.

"Odin was here all right." Loki said from down the hall.  The venom was clear in his tone, and Narugami could hear that he wasn't in his child-form.  "Would you like to know what he did?"

"Both of your household here seem fine, and you don't sound hurt...  That only leaves..."  Thor swore darkly.

Loki came into the room, Mayura tucked close to his side.

"Daidouji!"

"Hi Narugami-kun... I mean, Thor-san." Mayura said, unwilling to meet her classmate's eyes.

Thor's jaw dropped.

"That's right NaruKami-kun, she _knows_ now, thanks to Odin.  And there's more you should hear, why don't you sit," Loki gestured to the couch,  "since I seem to be explaining this to everyone today."

Fenrir sniffed the air and turned to Yamino.  "Weren't you starting dinner?"

Yamino's eyes widened and he went running for the kitchen, Fenrir trotting after him in hopes of scraps.

Loki and Mayura sat on the couch opposite Narugami, and Loki turned to her.  "**_Do you want to explain things to Thor, or shall I?_**" he asked.

"**_You understand all this better, can you explain please._**" Mayura half-smiled.

Thor's jaw almost hit the floor when he heard his sweet, naïve classmate speaking Old Norse.

"Alright then, NaruKami-kun, since I know you hate long, drawn-out explanations, I'll give you the short-short version:  Odin confronted Mayura after school today and forcibly gave her the knowledge of who and what I am.  By the time I got to her he was gone and she was unconscious.  I brought her home and put her in the best-warded room in the house, but when she woke up and tried to leave the room she was screaming in pain again, so we got the Norns.  They got rid of the spell, but when they checked her **_wyrd_** they discovered that she will be one of the Aesir." Loki shifted the arm he had wrapped around Mayura so that it was around her waist instead of her shoulder, and tugged lightly on her blouse to emphasize the mark he had left. "They told me her true name should be Sigyn." he said with a grin.

The stunned look on Narugami's face was so comical that even Mayura giggled.

"Well, um, congratulations I guess...  Do you think Father knew?  About her**_ wyrd_** I mean."

"I doubt it.  If he had he would, I'm sure, have done far worse to her than simply grant her knowledge."

Thor sighed.  "I wish he wasn't so set against you, Loki.  It's strange.  Not that I've ever claimed to understand Father's ways, but all these sudden attacks against you seem stranger than the usual.  Of course, he might know something I don't..." he trailed off.

"Poor NaruKami-kun.  Always so honest and straightforward; you really can't comprehend subtlety of action, can you?" Loki laughed.  "Sometimes I wonder what Sif ever sees in you, but she's always insisted there's more to you than just a giant-crusher." he said with a wink.  It was an oft-repeated joke between the two of them, and so didn't garner much more than a token growl from the Thunder God.

Loki turned to Mayura and kissed her forehead.  "Would you go check on Yamino-kun and find out when dinner will be ready?" he asked her.  "Oh, and you should call your father and let him know you'll be here until late this evening."

"You're right, I should do that!" Mayura said, and hurried off to the phone (which was kept in a different room, since Loki found it annoying).

Loki watched her go with an ironic smile, but when he was sure she was gone, his expression turned serious.  "**_I would ask a boon of you, Thor, in memory of our many adventures together.  Would you watch over her for me if anything should... happen to me._**"

"**_Of course I will, Loki_**_._" Thor said just as seriously. "**_She will suffer no hurt if I can prevent it._**" He sighed sadly.  "She would be saddest if you were gone, though.  When I saw her looking for you yesterday she just seemed so _lost_, and that was before all this about who she is, or will be, or whatever."

"She's taken all this in stride pretty well actually, all things considered.  I guess in a way it's just another 'fushigi mystery' for her, just a little closer to home than usual."

Narugami laughed suddenly.  "Freyr's going to pitch a fit." he predicted.

Loki muttered a few dark imprecations under his breath.  The Fertility God would surely be less-than-enthused at his "Yamato Nadeshiko" turning out to be Loki's wife.

Unnoticed on the sidewalk outside the Enjaku Detective Agency, Heimdall was leaning casually against the wall and _listening_.  Due to his supernatural sense of hearing, he was able to easily pick out the different conversations inside the building without triggering any of the wards.

It was interesting news today, that was for sure, and although he too snickered to imagine Freyr's reaction to it, he also frowned.  Heimdall had realized, during the time he spent with Hel when he should have died, that he had become far too obsessed with revenge on Loki, and it was clouding his judgment.  Hel's headlong rush into her own oblivion merely to hurt her father was, to him, a disturbingly familiar thing; he recognized its similarity to his own vendetta.  He was saddened by the obvious nature of the outcome of all her scheming and plotting - her own downfall whether she destroyed her father or not - and didn't want to follow in her footsteps.  He didn't quite know what to do with such thoughts - he could never really be _friends_ with Loki - but he_ had_ decided to hold off on actually killing the other God until he had decided how he wanted to deal with him.  No need to leave him alone entirely though, of course, and there were_ so many_ ways to antagonize Loki...

Heimdall smirked as he continued to listen.

After discovering that dinner wouldn't be ready for at least half an hour, Mayura went to call her dad.

"_Moshi moshi, Daidouji._" he answered.

"Papa, it's me.  I was just calling to say I'm at the detective agency."

"_Mayura!  I was just about to call there for you and see if you could stay the night there.  We've had a bit of a freak accident here and the power's out, although the phones still seem to be working for now at least, so I thought it might be better if you just stayed there._"

"Just a minute, I'll go ask." Mayura said, placing the phone down.  She went and peeked her head into the study.  "Loki, Papa said the power's off at home and suggested I stay here for the night..."

Loki laughed.  "You're more than welcome of course." he said, with a grin that should really have been categorized more as a leer, and winked at her.

Mayura blushed and backed out of the room again and went back to the phone.  "It's no problem, Papa, Loki... Loki-kun says I'm welcome to stay."  She almost forgot to use "-kun" but remembered in time that her father didn't know about everything that had been going on, and the change in her mode of address might make him suspicious.

"_That's good.  I'll see you tomorrow then Mayura, have a good night._"

"Oyasumi, Papa."

Of course, Narugami-kun _had_ to stay for dinner, which made it a lively affair, and by the time he left, everyone was more than ready to retire for the night.  Out of concern for her safety, (as well as other less honourable motivations) Loki insisted that Mayura sleep in his room.  Yamino-kun lent her a pair of his pajamas, and she looked very rumpled and cute in them with the cuffs and sleeves rolled up.  Loki, on the other hand, wouldn't fit Yamino-kun's pajamas, and since he hadn't spent enough time in his kakusei form here on Midgard to need pajamas, he didn't have any.  Even back in Asgard he usually would have slept 'al fresco', but that wasn't an option either, (most unfortunately, in his opinion) so he had to do a little bit of thinking to come up with a solution.

"Mayura, do you remember I told you I can change shapes?" he said, lounging in bed fully dressed with her head pillowed on his chest.

"Mmmhmmm." she answered sleepily.

"I thought, to help keep from forgetting myself, I would change into an animal for the night...  How would you like to cuddle up to a fox?  I promise to be warm and snuggly..." he grinned.

"mmkay." she mumbled, more than half asleep already.

"It's been a long week, hasn't it, Mayura." Loki said softly as he petted her hair and kissed her forehead while she fell completely asleep, "Between Hel's kidnapping you and my leaving - not to mention today's craziness.  Hopefully things will slow down for a bit now."

There was a flash of light, and then a large red fox was in Loki's place.  He curled up around Maura, laid his head on her shoulder, and dropped into that light doze that so many small predators have, resting but still on guard.  Ecchan floated down and snuggled in between them, and everyone slept peacefully.


	7. Part 7

Well, I'm back!  Hope everyone out there had a wonderful holiday and got everything they wanted!  I managed to finish this and the next section of the story, which I will post forthwith, as soon as I finish double-checking it for proper terminology.

Loki's Plan Part 7

Things were less peaceful the next morning, however.  Mayura's father came over early to drop off a clean school uniform for her, and since he wasn't expected, Loki hadn't prepared a very good explanation about his kakusei form.  There was a lot of fast talking required to keep Mayura's father from dragging her away on his scooter and hiding her somewhere, especially since he hadn't liked Loki-kun from the start.

On the other hand, Mayura's situation required far less fast talking; although Loki wisely glossed over the part where she was going to become his wife.  That would only have made him suspicious again.  Remarkably, Daidouji Misao seemed almost resigned to his daughter's not being mortal, which made Loki suspicious in his turn.  For all the time Mayura spent with him, he realized he knew little of her history before she met him except for that one time just after her mother's death.

The rest of the day went like any other day, and Loki resumed his "Loki-kun" form for most of it.  He realized that he would have to maintain it for the general public, since he was too well-known, and too many questions would be asked otherwise.  He could phase it out slowly, but if "small Loki" suddenly disappeared and "big Loki" appeared in his place, it would make people suspicious.  Even unobservant people like Inspector Niiyama.

Mayura dropped by after school, but she didn't stay long, since she had to pick up some groceries before she headed home and there weren't any big new cases or anything else to report.  Loki gave her a kiss before she left and wished her a pleasant night, although he was a little reluctant to let go of her.  He knew he didn't have long to wait before she would be with him always, though, so he didn't begrudge her a little time with the only family she'd had for so long.

He had a quiet night with his own family, and was fast asleep when the phone rang at one am.  Yamino was the one who woke to get the phone, although he was more than a little groggy himself.

"Moshi moshi..." he yawned.

"_Yamino-san?_" Daidouji Misao's worried voice came on the other end of the line.

"Daidouji-san?  Is something wrong?" Yamino asked, wide awake now.

"_Mayura's talking in her sleep...actually, more like yelling.  She seems quite upset and I can't get her to wake up.  She's not speaking Japanese, and since about the only thing I can pick up of it is Loki-san's name, I thought he might be able to help figure it out or wake her_" her father said, sounding almost frantic.

"I'll wake Loki-sama and we'll be right over." Yamino assured him.

"_Thank you._" he said with a sigh of obvious relief.

When Yamino went to knock on his father's door, Loki was already awake and in kakusei form.

"What was that all about?" he asked blearily.

"Daidouji-san called.  He said Mayura-san's having some sort of nightmare and won't wake up, and although she's saying something, I suspect she may have been speaking Old Norse since he couldn't understand anything more than your name.  He asked if you would come over to see if you can help." Yamino explained.

"You could very well be right about the language, given everything that's happened lately.  Well, what are we doing hanging around here?  Let's get going!"  Loki said.

Fenrir deigned to wake up as well, and with Ecchan floating above they headed to the shrine where Mayura lived.

When they got there Daidouji-san was just as frantic as he had sounded on the phone.  He quickly lead them through the living quarters to Mayura's room, and even before they got there they could hear her shouting.  her words were in Old Norse, as Yamino had guessed, but even if they were able to understand the words, what she was saying was not coherent.  About all they could make out was something about Loki, and running away, and babies.

Loki didn't precisely run, but he did pick up his pace getting to her room and when he got there he kneeled down at the side of her bed and gently shook her by the shoulder.

"Mayura, wake up, Mayura!" he said softly.

He got no response other than her rolling over and continuing to mumble in Old Norse about babies and running away.  He shook her a little harder and called her again with no better response than the last time, but then he got an idea.  He leaned over to kiss her brow and spoke to her gently in old Norse.

"**_Hush now, Sigyn, it's only a bad dream, nothing more_**" he reassured her.

"Loki?" she murmured, finally waking up.

"Hai Mayura, I'm here.  You were having a bad dream.  How are you feeling?" he asked.

"I'm fine.  I know I must be having a bad dream, but I don't remember what I was dreaming about."

"That's probably a good thing." he reassured her.

"Loki," Mayura said quizzically, beginning to wake up more and realizing where she was, "What are you doing at my house?"

"Your father was worried about you and he couldn't get you to wake up, so he called to see if I could help." Loki explained.

"Oh." Mayura said.

"If you're sure you're feeling better, you should probably go back to sleep.  It's after one am, and you do have school tomorrow - today, whatever." Loki laughed.

"Maybe you're right.  Will you stay until I fall asleep?"

"Of course." Loki said gently.

"Me too." Ecchan said and snuggled next to her.

Once Mayura was asleep again, Loki went to talk to her father.  He had a fairly good guess what her dream - or more properly nightmare - had been about, and it meant that it was time he explained Sign's exact position in relation to him.  Otherwise, Daidouji would not understand why what she was seeing was so significant.  Loki also expected the nightmares to become worse before they got better, and he wanted to keep her close to him at night so he could calm her - which meant having her sleep over at his house instead of her own.  It would test his resolve, he knew, but he would just have to resist.

"So you're telling me my daughter is supposed to _marry_ you?" Daidouji sat with his chin supported on the backs of his hands and glared at Loki.  The possibility of Mayura becoming prescient hadn't phased him much, but this was beyond bearing.

"I'm telling you she _will_ marry me." Loki said firmly.  "Not right away, but it will be soon."

"And if I protest this union?"

"It will go ahead, with your blessing or without, but I would prefer to have at least your cooperation in this.  I would rather not part Mayura from her family entirely."

"I'm sure you can understand, I haven't exactly had the best impression of you..."

"I understand completely.  I am a father too, and if some man were to announce summarily that he was going to marry one of my daughters I too would be demanding that he prove his worth."

"You have daughters?" Misao said, surprised.

"I do.  I have three... no, two daughters.  I lost my youngest just recently." Loki said sadly.

Misao was stunned by the woeful expression on his face.  It seemed strange to see this man - no, God - whom he had always thought of as a bizarre sort of child, mourning a daughter.  It made him seem more real, somehow.  "I am most sorry for your loss." he said with all sincerity.  "Loosing a loved-one is never easy."  He tentatively reached out to pat Loki's hand.

Loki blinked, a little surprised at Daidouji seeming change of heart toward him.  "I try not to dwell on it," he admitted.

"In any case, I will talk to Mayura in the morning and see what she wants to do." Misao conceded.  "I will allow the shikigami to stay the night with her in case of more bad dreams tonight, and if you wish you _may_ stay on the property as well; but in a room some distance from hers." he added sternly.

The night passed without any more disturbances, thankfully, and in the morning Daidouji Misao went to talk to his daughter.  She wasn't yet awake when he entered her room, and he stood for a while at the door, just looking at her.  She was curled on her side, her pose sweet and angelically innocent, but her father knew better.  Even now, when she was almost "grown up", to him she would always be the little scamp who had "painted" the temple walls with permanent marker when she was five because they were "too boring", or the twelve-year-old who had rebelliously cut her hair to just above her ears and dyed it peacock blue after a fight about...something - he'd even forgotten what it was - then come crying to him when the heat of her anger burned out and she was appalled at what she had done.  He still had pictures of that little escapade, although she didn't know any had even been taken.  Perhaps, if he ever grew to accept Loki, he would show the Trickster God those photos, Misao had a feeling he would appreciate them.  

He still regretted that his daughter had to grow up without a mother's tender influences.  Although her aunt (his sister) would occasionally have Mayura over to her house to spend time with her cousins there, and his mother-in-law had tried her best two summers ago to instill at least some amount of poise and decorum in her wayward granddaughter, some of it seemed to have stuck, but not nearly enough... and now, in a month, Mayura would be graduating from high school, and some time after that, he had just found out, she would be marrying a man - no, a God, he had to at least acknowledge that much - whom he did not even like, much less approve of.  Still, she would soon be her own woman, and he had always known she would leave him someday (although he hadn't thought it would be to live with a God, especially one of such ill repute as Loki)... and that she wasn't exactly human herself.

He tried to remember when he had first realized that his darling daughter wasn't quite like the other little girls.  It hadn't really been until she was in kindergarten.  Before that, he had always just seen her as his kawaii and special little girl.  He had assumed that all young children had the kind of golden aura she did, and that she would grow out of it with time and worldly experience, like the words of the famous poet: 

            "_But trailing clouds of glory do we come ... _

_At length the man perceives it die away, _

_And fade into the light of common day._"  

But when he saw her with all the other children her age, her aura was so much brighter than theirs that he knew something had to be different about her.

Misao shook his head.  All this wasn't accomplishing what he had come here to do.  He walked into the room and shook his daughter awake.

"Mayura, time to get up," he said.

"Already?" she sighed, rolling over and sitting up, "I didn't think it was morning yet."

"It's a little earlier than usual, but I have some things to talk to you about.  I was speaking to Loki last night after he came to calm you out of your nightmare.  He said he had asked you to marry him?"  Misao's frown was very evident.

"Well it's more like he explained what my destiny was, and I told him I was fine with becoming his wife."  Mayura said somewhat defiantly.

"Okay, I can understand that.  I never told you, for fear of you not understanding or taking this the wrong way, but I have always known you were different from other children, Mayura; made for bigger things.  I always saw different auras and powers around you than I did around other people.  Loki told me that he will marry you with my consent or without, so I'm telling you now: I may not be entirely comfortable with it, but if this is what you want, I'm willing to give my consent to it."

"Papa..."

"Who am I to argue with a God, after all.  No matter what you become, Mayura, you will always be my daughter.  But none of this is the main reason I came to talk to you this morning.  Loki says these nightmares like the one you had last night will likely increase.  He wants to keep you at his house so that he can keep track of what's happening with them, and keep waking you out of them quickly if it's needed, since it seems to be something I can't do.  I told him I would have to hear what you want to do, so, what do you think?"

"I think it would probably be best if I did go there.  I felt so much better last night after he was here, and the nightmare was so horrible...  I don't even know what it was, but it was horrible, that much I do know.  I'll feel better going to sleep knowing he's close to wake me up if I have another dream like that." Mayura said.

"Alright.  In that case, you'd better get up now and pack some things, since you'll be staying over at Loki's house.  I do hope you'll at least drop in and see your old dad once in a while." he said mournfully.

"Oh!  I promise I'll come for dinner every night, unless there's a case or something." Mayura said with a wink, and her father laughed.

"Alright, it's a deal then."


	8. Part 8

And here it is, the next part!  Hope everyone is enjoying this!

Loki's Plan Part 8

Sleipnir was restless in his stall.  He had smelled Mother's human-male-form scent quite strongly on that girl that Master had hurt, and he hated being part of anything which hurt Mother.  

Since Master was trying to breed him again (a thing to which he was not disinclined in the least, he was a stallion after all, and his mother's son) he had a bit more leeway than he normally would with getting in and out into the paddocks.  He decided that if he left after the grooms had been around in the early morning, he could get in a visit to Little Sister without much trouble.  Master had said something about her visiting Mother lately, he was sure she must know what was going on, and who Mother was claiming as a part of his herd these days.

Getting out of the paddock unnoticed was no trouble at all, and when he came to the bridge Gyoll he bowed politely before Modgud and she smiled at him.  

"Have you come to see your sister?" she asked.

"I have." Sleipnir admitted.

"She returned a few days ago from Midgard, and she hasn't been well, but I'm sure she'll be happy to see you." Modgud told him.

"I will hurry to her then." Sleipnir neighed, and galloped across the bridge.

When he reached Eljudnir he slowed down, and whinnied to warn her of his approach.

"Sleipnir?  Is that you?  Come on into the serving hall." he heard her call from inside.  

He nosed open the latch and trotted in.  When he reached his sister, Hel was slumped in her high seat at the head of the hall, and she was very pale.  Even though to him she always appeared whole - he had never seen her decaying side - her colour was very bad, and she looked weak enough to be almost on death's door.  He hurried over to her, and nuzzled her gently, and she weakly reached up to stroke his nose.

"What happened to you, Little Sister?" he asked with worry in his voice.

"That is a bit of a long story, but the gist of it is that Odin tricked me into thinking that Father hated me, and that he had left me here alone on purpose.  I don't know if he did something to make me a little mad or if it was just the loneliness that finally got to me, but I went to confront Father and make him feel the loneliness I felt.  I stayed far too long in Midgard and used power recklessly.  I guess part of me wanted to see what would happen if I died, as horrible as that sounds.  What happens to the Queen of the Dead when she dies?  Would I just return here, or disappear, or is there some other, unknown underworld to which I might go?"  She sighed deeply, then rubbed at her forehead.

Sleipnir sank onto his knees next to Hel and lifted her chin with his nose.  "Little Sister, you mustn't say such things!  If you died we would all be very upset and miss you terribly!"

Hel smiled wanly.  "I know, and I know it's silly to think such things, but I came very close to finding out, you know.  I'm not sure Father even knows I survived, although there hasn't been any way for me to reassure him that I am alive, I've been far too weak..." Hel perked up.  "Maybe you could tell him!"

"I could!" Sleipnir agreed. "Actually, I plan to go see Mother soon anyway.  I wondered if you know, Little Sister...  I took Master to Midgard a couple of days ago, and he hurt a girl who smelled of Mother's scent.  Is there anyone whom Mother is paying special attention to these days?"

"There is one...  Did she have hair of a similar colour to mine?"  Hel asked, frowning.

"Actually, she did." Sleipnir admitted.

Hel sighed.  "That would be Daidouji Mayura.  I held her for a little while away from Father, and he seemed most upset about it.  She is a kind girl, she tried to comfort me in my depression, I don't like to think of Odin hurting her in any way.  Sleipnir, I think you should definitely go to see Father and tell him I am alright.  You should also tell him that if there is anything I can do to help him, not to hesitate to ask it of me."

"Of course, darling Little Sister, I will tell him." Sleipnir agreed.  He nuzzled her one last time then rode off to Midgard to find Mother.  He would relay Little Sister's message, certainly, but he also intended to tell Mother exactly how unwell she looked and see if there was anything Mother could do to make her feel better.

When Mayura headed off to school, Yamino and Loki carried the bags she had packed back to their house.  Loki was in a rare good mood, and he was whistling cheerfully as they walked along.

"Loki-sama, won't it be difficult having Mayura staying with us?  I heard about what the Norns said..."

Loki just laughed.  "I'll put her in the room next to mine, have no fear there, and I'll spend today extending the wards on it to keep her safe; from me as well as anything else that might try to harm her."

"Daddy, I'll sleep at her feet if you want." Fenrir offered.

"Ask her if she wishes it, although I don't think she'll mind." Loki agreed.  "She seems to like puppies."

"I'm a wolf!  I'm not a puppy!" Fenrir objected. 

"Even wolves, when they are small, are puppies." Yamino pointed out.

Fenrir pouted but he couldn't argue the point.

When they got back to the house, Yamino and Loki busied themselves airing out and preparing Mayura's new bedroom, while Fenrir and Ecchan volunteered themselves to patrol the yard and watch for intruders.  It was about three hours after they had gotten home that they all heard the syncopated rhythm of a horse's hooves galloping, followed by a high-pitched whinny.

"Sleipnir!" Fenrir parked, and ran to the front yard.

"Hello, Little Wolf-brother." Sleipnir neighed, and leaned down to nuzzle him.

"Come into the back yard, Sleipnir-aniki." Yamino suggested, poking his face out the door.

"Little Snake-brother?" Sleipnir said, surprised.

"Yes, it's me.  Loki-sama laid a spell upon me to allow me to stay here with him, although Niichan managed to change his form to this puppy-like shape all on his own."

"I can see there is much to explain on both sides, maybe I should come around to your back yard as you suggested." Sleipnir whinnied in amusement.

"I'll tell Loki-sama you're here and we will meet you in the yard." Yamino said with a smile.

He rushed up to tell Loki that it was indeed Sleipnir they had heard, and then the two of them hurried down to the back yard.

"Mother!" Sleipnir neighed happily and nuzzled Loki, who wrapped his arms around his eldest son's neck and scratched him affectionately under the mane.

"Sleipnir!  What brings you here?" Loki asked.

"First to bring word of Little Sister.  I saw her just this morning and she said you might be worried about her..."

"Hel?  She's alive?" Loki said with a sudden note of hope in his voice.

"She is, and she told me I was to reassure you that she is fine, and tell you if there is anything she can do to help you against Odin you are to tell her and it will be done.  Honestly though, she is not as well as she would let on, she looked very sick, and she was horribly weak.  I wondered if there might be anything you can do to make her feel better, Mother?"

"There may be.  We have a few things to finish here, but how much time do you have before you're missed?"

"Oh, lots.  Master is trying to breed me again, so I can tell him I found a mare in season out in the forest and went off to get her.  I could even stay a few days if you like.  There is indeed a mare in the forest who is in season, but I know her well, and she'll come with me if I ask her, so I won't be caught out on that story."

Loki laughed. "You are indeed my son, aren't you?" he said.  "Well, if you have time, then I think I would like it if you could take me to see Hel.  Why don't you crop some grass for a bit, and maybe Yamino-kun can find you something more substantial to eat while I finish the wards I'm placing, and then we will ride to Niflheim to see her."

Halfway across town, Heimdall was plotting.  He was plotting a most wonderful plot to really irritate Loki without actually harming him, and the mere thought of it made him giggle.  He still hadn't told Freyr about that Mayura girl's situation, he had decided it would be funnier if he found out on his own, and also, he somehow didn't want to see the Vanir sad.  He was trying to think of some way to distract the other God once he found out, and he was on the lookout for other pretty girls.  Freyr always was a sucker for a pretty face.  He would warn Freya, however.  He knew that even if she was obsessed over Loki, she had a great respect for the inexorability of**_ wyrd_**, and destined love was one of her areas of expertise.  He was presently waiting outside "Ooshima Reiya's" school for the little girl form of Freya to emerge.  He giggled again, thinking about his great plot to bug Loki, then straightened up as he saw a head with brown curls tied up with two bows walk past him.

"God afternoon Reiya-chan!" he called out to her.

"Oh!  Higashiyama-kun, Reiya didn't see you there!" she replied, heading over to him.

"Do you have a few spare minutes?  I have something to talk to you about.  **_In private_**." he asked. 

Reiya blinked, then nodded imperceptibly, and they headed of to a nearby park.

When they got there, Freya appeared in a flash of light and frowned at Heimdall.  "Okay, what is it that you wanted to say to me?" she asked, sounding a little put out.  "I was going to head over to Loki's place after school today, you know."

"Well, it's a good thing I caught you when I did, then." Heimdall said.  "There 's been a bit of a development with Loki and that Mayura girl in the last couple of days, and it really is something you should know about."

"What do you mean 'development' Heimdall?" Freya asked, her voice icy.

"Mayura was attacked by Odin, and when Loki went to the Norns for help, they discovered that she really shouldn't be Mayura at all." He took a deep breath, then looked Freya right in the eye.  "She's Sigyn, Freya." he said.

There was a sad note in Heimdall's voice.  He didn't like to be the bearer of bad news to such a beautiful Goddess.  He secretly rather liked Freya, even if she did have a foolish obsession with Loki, and he hated to see her upset.

Freya's face fell, and her eyes began to tear up.  "She's Sigyn?  Are you sure?"

"That's what the Norns said, and it makes sense, Freya, you have to admit that."

"You're right, it does make sense." Freya said sadly, "Although I wish it didn't.  She always seemed to get and keep his attention even when she wasn't really trying."  She sighed deeply.  "I guess I should go talk to Skuld-chan.  She also had feelings for Loki, and I'm sure she must be upset."

Heimdall reached out to pat her hand.  "I'm sorry I had to tell you Freya, I'm sorry I had to make you unhappy," he said.

Freya smiled down at him.  "No, it's better that I know."  Her smile turned into a thoughtful frown. "You know, I really shouldn't have to look down at you like this." she said.  

She leaned down to kiss him and his body shifted until he was in his more natural form.  He appeared to be a young man of about twenty-two or three, and his clothes were slightly more formal than they had been before, although he still wore his heavy leather gloves.

"There.  Much better." Freya said with satisfaction.  "You can still change to your other form, since people will expect it, but now you can resume this form whenever you want."

"Thank you!" he said, rather stunned.

"Think nothing of it." Freya said.  "Now I must go see Skuld.  If you'll excuse me..."


	9. Part 9

I forgot in Part 7 (or was it 8?) to ask if anyone knew where that poem comes from, and who the author is…so if anyone knows, put it in your review.  If you get it right you get……. A great big smile from me!

And now, without further ado, here's:

Loki's Plan Part 9

Loki quickly finished up his wards for Mayura's room and mounted Sleipnir.  As they rode to Niflheim, he told his son all about what had been happening since Odin banished him to Midgard and all the troubles the Alfadder had caused him, and Sleipnir was quite upset.

"Master has been _awful_ to you, Mother!  How can he be so awful!"

"I don't know, Sleipnir, I don't understand it either, but for some reason he seems to be set against me.  He has been for a long time, really."

They sped across the bridge and Loki bowed politely to Modgud as they went past her and she waved.  It wasn't long before they were inside the hall again, and Loki rushed off his son's back to embrace his youngest.

"Hel!  You're alive!  I hardly dared believe it when Sleipnir told me, but now I see it for myself." he said happily.

She hugged him back weakly and smiled.  "Yes, I'm fine Otousama.  You shouldn't have worried about me," she said.

"Shouldn't have worried?"  Loki held her out at arms' length, "But Hel, you're so weak!  And you don't look very well either.  Besides, I'm your father, of course a father would worry about his daughter."

Hel giggled.  "I guess you're right.  But really, Otousama, all I need to do is stay here for a while and I'll be better.  Odin placed a spell on me when he first put me here to connect me with the land.  If I'm away too long it drains me and I have to return here to recharge myself."

Loki growled.  "I knew he had trapped you here somehow, but I had no idea it was as bad as that.  I don't know if I can take the spell off you, but I think there may be a way for me to circumvent it.  You shouldn't have to be lonely here by yourself all the time, Hel."

"That would be nice, Otousama, I would like to spend more time with you and Niisan-tacchi and that kind Mayura girl.  Is she all right Otousama?  I know Sleipnir said Odin had hurt her."

Loki laughed.  "She was hurt, but she's better now.  In fact, that's a little bit of exciting news... the Norns told me that her **_wyrd_** will soon turn her into Sigyn, whom she was meant to be from birth."  He grinned.  "How would you like to have her as your step-mother?"

"Otousama!  Really?  But that's wonderful news!  She is such a sweet girl.  Mind you, I suppose it's also worrisome for you, since if Odin finds out..."

"He'll use her as a tool against me." Loki said solemnly.  "Yes, I had thought of that."

"Otousama..."

"Don't let it concern you, Hel, I'll be careful, and I have a few surprises set up or Odin when he comes." Loki said grimly. "I'm not letting him hurt my family any more than he already has.  If **_wyrd_** has already been altered through Sigyn being born where she was not expected, surely its threads can be shifted yet further to avoid the tragedies that are supposed to be in store for us."

"I hope that might be true." Hel said with a smile for her father.

Loki stayed and chatted with Hel for a little while, then he headed back.  He didn't want to spend too much time away, in case something might happen while he was gone.  He trusted his sons, but their power was not as strong as his, and definitely not as strong as Odin's.  

He bid his daughter a cheerful farewell, promising to look into some way to circumvent Odin's spell so she could stay with them for a while, then rode back across the bridge to Midgard.  There was little conversation this time, and more speed, and soon he was back at the Enjaku.  It was almost time for Mayura's school to let out, and he decided it would probably be a good idea to collect her from school.  He would go in his kakusei form, he thought, and surprise her.

Ecchan greeted him excitedly when he arrived, and the two of them headed to the school, Ecchan taking her accustomed place on Loki's head.

Heimdall was still a little dazed by Freya's great gift, so it didn't at first occur to him that the man walking toward him with the funny white hat was in fact Loki with that shikigami of his sitting on his head.  It wasn't until the other God stopped dead in his tracks and stared at him that the Watcher realized who he was.

"Heimdall?" Loki asked, confused to see his usual adversary in his true form for the first time since he had been sent down to Midgard.

"Yes, Loki, it's me." Heimdall confirmed smugly.

"How did you..." Loki gestured to the other God's obviously full-grown form.

"Why should I tell you?" Heimdall laughed.  This was great!   It was almost better than his earlier plotting!

"Never mind, I probably don't want to know.  It's been such a good day so far, no need to ruin it yet." Loki muttered.  "Just you stay away from Mayura." he cautioned.

"**_Don't worry, I have no designs on Sigyn_**." Heimdall placated Loki.

Loki blinked, then frowned.  "Those damned ears of yours again." he said.

"Indeed.  Ja, Loki." Heimdall said cheerfully and sauntered off.

Loki scowled as he walked the rest of the way to Mayura's school.  Heimdall's sudden change of form was not at all a calming thought, and he really wanted to know how it had come about.  He wasn't likely to find out from Heimdall himself though, that much was obvious.  He would just have to keep his ears open.  The Gods all gossiped like old women, and that hadn't changed since they came down to Midgard.

He waited at the school gates for Mayura to come out, and when she did she didn't see him right away, which was all as he planned it.  He came up silently behind her and put his arms around her, covering her eyes.

"Guess who!" he whispered into her ear.

Mayura giggled and leaned back into his arms.  "Loki!" she said.

"How did you guess?" he laughed and turned her around to kiss her.

She leaned into his embrace and they kissed deeply for a moment before he let her go.

"I have exciting news, but I'll tell you about it when we get home." he told her.

"Exciting news?"  She snuggled next to him.

"Yes, about my little girl." Loki said with a smile.

"You're... smiling about her!" Mayura exclaimed.

"I am." Loki agreed.

They walked home hand in hand, earning more than one jealous glare from women they passed, and when they got there Mayura turned to Loki and kissed him sweetly.

"So?  Tell, tell!" she insisted.

Loki laughed.  "First I want you to meet someone."  He took her through the house to the back yard and whistled.

"Mother, you're home!" Sleipnir neighed excitedly as he trotted up to them.

"Mayura, this is my eldest son, Sleipnir." he gestured at the stallion, "Sleipnir, this is Mayura."

Sleipnir bowed politely to Mayura, who did the same.

"It's because of Sleipnir that I have my good news." Loki explained.

"I was worried about Mother after Master hurt you, so I went to talk to Little Sister.  She told me Mother might have thought she was dead, so I came here to tell Mother she wasn't." Sleipnir told her.

Mayura turned, smiling, to Loki.  "Wasn't I the one who said there was still a chance she didn't die?"

"You were.  I should have listened to you I guess," he admitted

"You should have," she said sternly.  Then she laughed.  "But oh, Loki that's wonderful news!"

Sleipnir whickered with laughter.  "You certainly picked a good mare this time, Mother, strange as that always seems to me," he said.

Loki laughed as well and wrapped his arm around Mayura.  "You're remarkably understanding about your mother's preference for other mares." he teased his son, ruffling his forelock.

Sleipnir whinnied loud and long, tossing his head.  "I've missed you, Mother," he said.

"And I you." Loki smiled sadly.  "I wish you had more freedom from Odin."

"It's alright Mother, Master and I manage together."

"I know.  But with the way he's been lately with anyone or anything related to me I worry for you.  I want you to promise me if he ever _ever_ tries to hurt you, you run here, as fast as those legs of yours will carry you, is that understood?"

"Yes, Mother." Sleipnir bowed his head dutifully.

"Good." Loki said.  Then his expression lightened.  "Now you go find that mare you were telling me about.  I may be your mother, but this 'mare' understands a stallion's needs all too well." he laughed and ruffled Sleipnir's mane affectionately.

"If my Mother insists!" Sleipnir neighed, tossing his head to settle his mane back in place and laughing as he spun, then galloped off into the sky.

Loki grinned at Mayura, who was giving him a quizzical look.

"I know there's a perfectly good reason he calls you 'Mother' but for the life of me I can't remember what it is." she admitted.

"Because I_ am_ his mother." Loki laughed, steering her inside, "I took the form of a mare to avert a little crisis by distracting a stallion, and some months later my little colt there was the result."

"Ah.  I think I must have known that." Mayura mused.  "These memories of mine are such a mystery!"

Loki rolled his eyes indulgently.  "It wouldn't surprise me if Odin gave you that bit of knowledge, it doesn't exactly paint me in a very good light.  After all, it means I had sex with a horse!"

"But you had to, right?  I mean if that was the only way to keep the stallion away from where you didn't want him.  And besides, these days guys are supposed to be nurturing too, and it gives you an edge there... You actually know what it's like to childbear and give birth!" Mayura teased him.

Loki mock-growled at her and pulled her into a deep kiss.

"You'll be knowing what that's like soon enough as well, if I have anything to say about it," he said huskily.

She shivered, running a shaky hand through his hair.  "Why did the Norns say we have to wait?" she asked plaintively.

Loki forcibly stopped himself before he dipped her into another scalding kiss and rubbed a hand soothingly over her back instead.  "Because I could hurt you if things happen too soon, love.  I want this as much as you do, but it'll only be another week or so."

"How will you know?" Mayura asked.

"The Norns will tell me." Loki assured her, grinning. "And if they don't, I'll pester them until they do."

Mayura giggled.

"Once they say it's okay, you'll just need one other thing," he told her, leading her to one of the interior rooms she hadn't seen before.  Holding his hand before the door, he whispered a few words under his breath.  The door opened just far enough to admit the two of them, then closed again behind them.

"What _is_ all this?" Mayura asked, looking up at all the "mysterious" items placed on shelves above her reach.

"These are magical items, or items of power.  Not dangerous ones, but like anything else, they could do harm to anyone just stumbling across them without knowing what they are." he explained.  "The one we're looking for is over here." he told her, lifting a box down from one of the shelves and placing it on a table in the center of the room.

He carefully and caressingly ran his fingers down the row of bindrunes inscribed instead of a lock, and they flared briefly with the green flame of his power before the box opened silently.

Mayura peered into the box, full of excited curiosity.  "Oh!  Those are the apples that friend of yours sent...  But I can read the label now!  It says they're for... me?"  She looked up at Loki, confused.  "Why would your friend send you something for me?" she asked.

"Because my 'friend' is Idun, and these are her golden apples which grant the Aesir and Vanir their continued youth.  She sent them to me for you because she could see somehow that we were meant to stay together, and she knew they would allow that.  These apples are what you need before we can be together.  The Norns said at least one before we can do anything." Loki explained.

Mayura ran one finger gently over the smooth, firm flesh of the apple then smiled at Loki.  "I hope it won't be long."

*grins* Loki's gonna skewer me for that bit about childbearing but I don't care, it was too funny to pass up!

Seeya with the next part soon!


	10. Part 10

*grins* And now we come to the…meat…of the story, although this is the "lite" version.  I haven't written the actual lemon scenes yet, but when I do, which will be soon, I will post them elsewhere, and you will all be directed to where you can read them. ^_~

Now on with the show!

Loki's Plan part 10

The ensuing week was very difficult for Loki.  Mayura's nightmares only increased in intensity, although she still couldn't remember them, and Loki hardly allowed himself to sleep at night, for fear of not waking in time to pull her out of them.  Consequently, he ended up sleeping in the day when Mayura was off at school.  He walked her there, and walked her back, and was constantly around her but couldn't allow himself to touch her any more thanwas absolutely necessary.  It was pure torture, but he grit his teeth and bore it.  He had to keep reminding himself that this was more than just one of the Norns' sick jokes.

On the tenth night after Odin's attack, Mayura's nightmare was worse than ever.  She went from peaceful sleep to screaming with no warning at all, and when Loki rushed to her room she was sitting up in bed with wide, unseeing eyes.

"**_You let go of my babies, you monster!_**" she screamed in rage, tears streaming down her face. "**_Run!  Run away from him!  . . . No!  Loki~~!_**"

Just as her screams turned to wracking sobs, Loki pushed through the wards and into her room.  He gently gathered her into his arms, hardly aware of Fenrir as he hopped down from the bed and closed the door behind him as he left the room.

"**_I'm here Sigyn, don't cry, I'm here._**" he said soothingly.

Mayura looked up at him, and he couldn't tell if she was awake or asleep.

"**_Why did he take my babies?  Why did he hurt them?  Why, Loki?_**" she asked, hiccupping.

Loki closed his eyes to hide his pain and clenched his hands into tight fists against her back.  The helpless pleading in her voice was almost more than his heart could stand.

"**_I'm sorry Sigyn, I just don't know._**" he said, his voice choked with emotion. "**_I've never understood that part of the prophecies myself._**"  He shook his head.  "**_Come now Sigyn, it hasn't truly happened, you yet sleep and dream.  You must wake._**" he said firmly.

She blinked, then Mayura was looking out of her own eyes once again, but unlike all the other nights he could see the knowledge of her dream shining from those tear-bright eyes at him.

She buried her face in his chest, sobbing afresh, and he rubbed her back soothingly.

"I'm sorry Mayura, I'm sorry you had to see that." he said gently.

"But _why_?" she asked plaintively.

"It is a part of the **_wyrd_** laid out for us.  It doesn't make sense to me either." he explained sorrowfully.

Eventually her sobs trailed into hiccups, and she slipped into the sleep of the emotionally exhausted.  Very gently Loki rearranged her so that he could recline in the bed, her head pillowed on his chest.  He wouldn't sleep himself, but there was no way he was leaving her alone in this state.  She wasn't going to school tomorrow either, he was going to insist on that.  She was going to stay right here with him, and they were going to have a little talk with the Norns about these dreams.

Loki hadn't meant to fall asleep, or even thought he could with everything that was running through his head, but his lack of sleep combined with Mayura's soft breathing had conspired to send him into a deep, healing rest.  He woke with his arms tangled around Mayura, and hers around him, feeling better than he had in days.  He gently disentangled himself from her without waking her and went to get breakfast.

He was back in the room by the time she woke up, although not on the bed.  He had brought in a comfortable chair and a book, and was reading.  He had already called the Norns, and was expecting them within the half-hour.  

"Mmm..." Mayura mumbled, slowly waking, "What time is it?" 

"Ten in the morning." Loki informed her, looking up from his book.

"Kyaaa!!  I'm so _late_!" she squeaked, almost falling out of bed in her hurry.

"You aren't late, you aren't going to school today, I've already called in for you.  We're going to talk to the Norns about that dream you had last night," he said firmly.

"I don't want to remember it." Mayura whispered.

"Oh sweet, I know you don't want to, but remember, everything can have its own interpretation, and not all visions of the future are accurate or even literal.  Sometimes we have to look at the deeper metaphorical meaning." Loki said comfortingly.

"That's true, but it doesn't make it any less horrible." Mayura said.

When the Norns arrived, Mayura was up and dressed and they were both sitting in the living room.  Urda, Verdandi and Skuld bowed politely before they sat down.

"Before you get into a long explanation of why you called us, we have news you should hear." Urda said, holding up her hand as Loki began to speak.

"We were curious, after we left last time, how it was that one of the Aesir could have been born of mortal parents so we did a little investigating." Verdandi explained.

"What do you remember about your mother, Mayura-chan?" Skuld asked.

"Mama?  Not very much.  I was only four when she died.  I remember she was pretty, with light brown hair although I don't really remember her face, and she smelled good and had a soft, kind voice.  Mostly I remember that I didn't want her to die and she did.  I prayed every day for her to stay with me." she said softly, looking down.

"Mayura, when we told you your **_wyrd_** you told us that both your parents were mortal.  That was not the truth, although there was no way you could know that." Urda said with a secretive smile.  She turned to Loki.  "Do you remember, Loki, some years ago Frigg disappeared for a time?"

Loki gave the Norns a _look_, then looked at Mayura and laughed.  "So many more things make sense now." he said.

Mayura searched her new memories to figure out who they were talking about, and when she did, she gasped in shock. "You're telling me Mama _isn't_ dead?" she asked, "Why did she pretend to get so sick and leave us then?"

"She likely _was_ sick, and had to leave." Loki explained, squeezing her hand, "None of the Aesir can go for too long without Idun's apples, and since nobody here knew her true nature she couldn't exactly go and return."

"Besides, if Odin had found out..." Skuld shivered.  "He's always expected her to be faithful, even when he has more by-blows than she has children.  She hid you well, we all just assumed she was down here to hide Baldur away and avert his death."

Loki chuckled at that.  "I don't even need to guess where she hid him; I've been suspicious of 'Koutaro' from the moment I met him, and his reaction to Hel clinched it for me."

Urda's eyes widened.  "So _that_ was who he was asking about!" she realized.

"Yes, they corresponded for years, ever since not long after Hel was sent to Niflheim." Loki explained.

"You mean Koutaro-kun is my _brother_." Mayura exclaimed, shocked.

"He is, but he probably doesn't remember." Urda cautioned her.

"He should soon, though.  He's reached his seventeenth birthday, the age of Majority.  It wouldn't surprise me if he's already starting to remember." Verdandi mused.

"He's such a flirt, now I'm _really_ glad he never flirted with me." Mayura said with a slightly sick expression.

Skuld couldn't help but laugh out loud.  "I can't believe _that's_ the first thing you thought of."

"Well I'm glad he never flirted with you too." Loki told her, kissing her sweetly.

Skuld's expression darkened, but she knew there was nothing she could do to sooth the hurt she felt.

"Now that you've heard our news, why was it that you called upon us?" Verdandi asked.

"Mayura has been having nightmares.  I had suspected that they were about our **_wyrd_** since she only reacted to being called Sigyn and spoken to in Old Norse.  Up until now she has always forgotten them, but last night when I woke her she remembered."

Mayura looked almost on the verge of crying just from being reminded of the dream, so Verdandi went and sat next to her and put her hand on Mayura's shoulder.

"You don't need to tell us out loud what the dream was, we can see it in your memory if you will allow us to." she reassured her.

"I... I think that might be better." Mayura agreed.

The Norns gathered around her and their power swirled around her and them.  When they pulled back, they all had melancholy expressions on their faces.

"Be reassured, it will not come to pass for some time." Urda said softly, taking one of Mayura's hands.

"And it may not be exactly as you have seen it." Skuld added.

"And there is some good news." Verdandi said with a smile, "You are ready now to eat your first apple, if you wish."

Both Loki and Mayura broke out in smiles at that news.

"We'll leave you to discuss it between the two of you." Urda winked, then led her sisters away, "We'll see ourselves out."

After the Norns left, Mayura and Loki sat for about ten minutes just staring at each other, before they both broke out in massive grins.

"So..." Loki started

"So..." Mayura said at the same time.

They both started laughing.  Loki gestured to Mayura to go first.

"So you called me in sick from school?" she asked with a twinkle in her eye.

Loki laughed.  "I did indeed.  And I think it would be a perfect time for Yamino and Fenrir to go visit their sister.  Sleipnir did offer to take them, after all, and I believe we might want to have the house to ourselves." he winked.

Mayura blushed brightly, but she smiled as well.

Heimdall had been having an interesting week.  Freyr had been appropriately shocked at his appearance, then congratulated him on regaining his true form and gone about as though nothing had really changed.  For Heimdall, though, everything had.  He still lacked his eye, and wanted to go after Loki for taking it and get it back, but right now his mind was taken up with thoughts of Freya.  He knew she wasn't the least bit interested in him, but he couldn't help imagining what it would be like to be with her.  No doubt she was still pining over Loki.  Every time he thought of that it only served to make him angry with Loki.  How could he have ignored such a beautiful, vibrant woman? ...

Heimdall finally made up his mind that same morning of Mayura's nightmare.

"I'm going out for a bit." he called to Freyr as he left the house in kakusei form, "Don't bother waiting up, I may be a little while."

"Fine then, don't eat the dinner I'm cooking for you." Freyr pouted.

Heimdall just rolled his eyes and shut the door.

As he walked toward Freya's house, he tried very hard not to think about the ways this could go wrong.

'It's just dinner.' he reminded himself, 'A chance for both of you to get out of the house, nothing more.'

He tried not to let his nervousness show as he knocked on her door.  He saw "Reiya's" face through the window, but it was Freya who opened the door.

"To what do I owe the honour?" she asked, tilting her head curiously.

"Freyr's cooking again, and I wondered if you'd like to go to dinner with me," he said.  "Not that I'm saying Freyr can't cook, of course..."

Freya laughed.  "That's okay, I know all about his cooking." she reassured Heimdall. "It's very predictable, ne?  I would love to go out for dinner," she said with a smile, "just give me a minute to make myself presentable.  Come on in."

Heimdall stood slightly uncomfortably in the front hall, holding his hands together and trying not to fidget.  When Freya came back she was positively radiant, and she had a big smile on her face.

"So, where are we going?" she asked.

"We are going to a nice little place I found the other day which actually does a decent job of reproducing French cuisine." Heimdall said with a smile, "How does that sound?"

"That sounds lovely." Freya agreed.

After the boys had been sent away, all three grinning like fools, Loki leaned over to kiss Mayura where she was sitting on the couch still.

"I'll go fetch the apples, and I'll be right back." he said affectionately.

"I'll be right here." Mayura smiled up at him.

When he returned with the basket containing the three apples Idun had sent him, Loki observed Mayura where she lay reclining on the couch.  She was humming something he didn't recognize and her mind was obviously elsewhere.

"Are you sure you're ready for this?" he asked, sitting down by her feet.

She turned to him with a smile.  "I'll be becoming part of one of the biggest mysteries ever, won't I!" she laughed. "Yes, I'm sure I'm ready Loki, I really am."

He pulled her into his lap and handed her the first apple.  "It might burn a little on the way down," he cautioned her, "but you need to eat all of it except for the core."

Mayura was proud of the way her hand barely shook as she raised the fruit to her lips.  She'd told Loki she was ready, and she was, really, but this was an awfully big step.  She bit into the apple and her mouth was flooded with a honey-sweet flavour.  It reminded her somehow of being very young and biting into a fresh apple for the very first time.  As she swallowed, it heated up, warming her stomach the way her father's ceremonial saké had that time she'd snuck some when she was twelve.  Loki's arms tightened around her as she continued to eat, and she couldn't quite tell anymore whether the heat radiating from her middle was due to the apple or him.

Loki watched in awe as Mayura's aura changed before his eyes, making her shine from within.  As she finished the last of the edible parts of the apple, he took the core and incinerated it with a puff of flame so hot that not even ashes were left.  Better safe than sorry with something as powerful as Idun's apples, he thought, he wouldn't want them to fall into the wrong hands.

Mayura turned to look up at Loki, and he leaned down until their noses were touching. 

"**_Now I can make you mine forever._**" he whispered, and picked her up in his arms as he kissed her and headed for his room, carrying the basket with the two remaining apples as well.

Mayura moaned as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders.  She could still feel the apple's fire in her belly, but Loki was nothing if not adept at distraction, and before long she was feeling so much more than that warmth that she forgot all about it.

* *

Afterward, she lay with her head on his chest and he handed her the second apple.

"This one shouldn't burn so much." he reassured her as he ran his fingers through her hair.

"Does that mean I don't get to be distracted?" Mayura pouted.

Loki laughed.  "Awfully demanding, aren't you?" he teased, then rolled her onto her back and propped himself up on his elbows above her. "Silly girl, of course you get to be 'distracted'.  If you don't hurry up and eat that apple I might just forget myself and start to 'distract' you right now!" he warned her, only half joking.

Mayura giggled and dutifully ate her second apple.  A little awkwardly since she was on her back, but she managed.  

When a dribble of juice escaped down her cheek, Loki caught it with one finger and directed it back toward her mouth.  "You mustn't miss any." he chided her gently.

She mock-glared and stuck her tongue out at him briefly before licking the apple juice off his finger.  That was almost too tempting, so he made an effort to find something else to think about.  He looked more closely at the girl he was sharing his bed with.  Her body was slowly beginning to change beneath him, becoming closer to the ideal of 'woman' without becoming any less 'Mayura'.  He thought about what the Norns had told him, today and before, about Mayura.  The fact that his Sigyn had been born human, in a place on the other side of the world from his home in the Norse lands and with a different name, was not something they had foreseen, nor had they known who her mother was.  It had taken Odin attacking her and him going to them about her to bring all this into the open.

"Mou... Loki, you're brooding again." Mayura's voice interrupted his thoughts.  "I'm finished my apple..."

"So you are." he smiled down at her, "And you're right, I was brooding.  How can I ever make it up to you?"

Mayura's giggle was cut short as Loki delved deeply into her mouth while he took the second apple core and burned it.

She hardly noticed the heat from the apple with the heat Loki was creating between them, but she did notice her senses were sharpening.  She wondered briefly if the increase in sensitivity was natural or if it came from the apple , but she couldn't spare the concentration to puzzle it out so she let it be for the moment and let herself simply enjoy it.

* *

Loki laughed as he rolled onto his back.  It wasn't a sarcastic laugh, or a mocking laugh, but the laugh of a man free and at peace for the first time in a long while.

"Mou!  What's so funny?" Mayura asked, rolling over and punching him lightly in the stomach.  

He pulled her on top of him and laughed again.  "Everything's funny... Life's funny... I love you, you know." he said with a smile.

"Loki..." Mayura said softly.

"It still surprises me sometimes.  I wasn't expecting to fall in love down here on Midgard, I thought I was just biding my time here, but here you are, and I loved you even before I knew you were supposed to be Sigyn... It's a good thing I decided to stay here, ne?"

"Loki, you have the _weirdest_ sense of humour." Mayura pouted.

"Of course I do." he grinned unrepentantly up at her, "Now eat your last apple."

Mayura stuck her tongue out at him before lifting the third apple to her lips and beginning to eat.  As she ate she felt a growing sense of anticipation, and it wasn't until she was halfway through that she realized it wasn't all coming from her.

"Loki... I can feel you!" she said, stunned.

"Of course you can, you're lying on top of me." he smirked.

She glared at him.  "In here." she gestured to her head.  "I can feel your emotions."  She giggled helplessly.  "Mystery!  I'm turning psychic!"

Her giggles weren't helped by being able to feel Loki's amusement, she felt like it was tickling her brain from within.  "It's _not_ funny." she said firmly, trying to suppress her hilarity.

"You're right, it's not.  You're going to need some training." Loki said more seriously, "Otherwise you'll go crazy from feeling everyone around you."

"I suppose so." Mayura agreed as she finished her last apple.

Loki looked deep into her eyes as he burned the last apple core, and she looked right back at him.

"So I'm a Goddess now?" she asked.

Loki grinned.  "That you are.  **_And I'm going to show you what I do to Asinjur who catch my fancy!_**" he growled in Old Norse and rolled her onto her back, knowing her body could handle a little rougher treatment now.

* * 


End file.
